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The international media are now focused on two flash points on the globe - the tsunami and cataclysmic nuclear threat in Japan and the West's air strikes in Libya against the forces of Muamar Gadaffi. Analyst David Essing looks at some of the lessons to be learned from these developments that should be applied to Iran's drive to acquire nuclear weapons.

While Iran advances at full tilt on its nuclear weapons program, Tehran is also stepping up its subversion throughout the Middle East. The Israel Navy's interception of a major shipment of advanced missiles and other sophisticated weaponry to Gaza is but one tentacle of the Iranian octopus of terror and intervention aimed at imposing Iranian hegemony in the region. Analyst David Essing bases his assessment on two corners of the arena.

Maj.Gen. (res.) Amos Gilad, a senior adviser to Defense Minister Ehud Barak, has warned that one lesson from Libya is that radical regimes such as Iran must not be allowed to acquire nuclear weapons. Gen. Gilad noted that Muamar Kadafi had been forced to abandon his nuclear weapons project in the past, otherwise he would now be threatening to use them today against his opponents at home and abroad. IsraCast analyst David Essing reports on some of the issues now facing Israel.

Is Iran now seeking a permanent naval presence in the Mediterranean Sea? Israel's Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman has disclosed that Tehran is sending two naval vessels to Syria in what is being viewed as a provocative step by the regime that talks of ' wiping the Zionist entity off the map.' The move also comes against the background of renewed protest demonstrations against the regime that has ruled the country with an iron fist, ever since it seized power in the Khomeini Revolution in 1979. Israeli analyst Menashe Amir assess these current developments in an interview with IsraCast's David Essing

At the end of the sabbath, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu welcomed Egypt's ruling Supreme Council pledge to honor all its international agreements including the peace treaty with Israel. Netanyahu praised the praised the peace agreement as serving the interests of both countries and a cornerstone of Middle East stability. As the monumental events unfolded, there was no telling what they would portend for Israel. While visiting the U.S., Defense Minister Ehud Barak said Israel must 'upgrade' its long term security while pushing for peace with both the Palestinians and its Arab neighbors. For the foreseeable future the Egyptian Army, that has served as an anchor of moderation that has resolved the crisis, will be running the country. David Essing assesses how Mubarak's departure is being viewed in Israel.

Barring last minute developments, Maj. Gen. Benny Gantz will reportedly become the new IDF Chief of Staff after Attorney General Yehuda Weinstein disqualified Maj.Gen. Yoav Gallant. However Gallant has not given up - in TV interviews he declared: 'I never lied, deceived or acted dishonorably in the land dispute near my home'. Nonetheless, Gen. Gallant is fighting a rear guard action against overwhelming odds, despite growing public support for his case. David Essing has this assessment of the controversial affair that has rocked the IDF and the entire country.

Israeli leaders and the IDF are closely monitoring the rioting across Egypt that is threatening to topple the regime of President Hosni Mubarak, Israel's closest ally in the Middle East. A former Israeli cabinet minister, who has been the closest Israeli official to Mubarak, has now warned that Israel must prepare for the post-Mubarak era. And Binyamin Ben Eliezer adds: 'I believe a new Egyptian regime will be more militant and radical Islamist'! Analyst David Essing has this assessment on how the tumult in Egypt is being viewed in Israel.

Maj.Gen. Aviv Kochavi, the new commander of IDF Intelligence Branch, has presented his first briefing to the Knesset Foreign Affairs & Defense Committee. His main point was that Iran has the capability of producing a nuclear weapon within one to two years after its leadership takes a decision to 'break out' and dash for the bomb. IsraCast analyst David Essing says Kochavi, whose name is derived from the word for star in Hebrew, is indeed the rising star in the IDF, and committee members later said they were impressed by the incisiveness of the new intelligence chief.

In 1940, John F. Kennedy wrote a book on the rise of Nazi Germany entitled 'Why Europe Slept'. In 2006, Bruce Bawer described how radical Islam is destroying the West from within in his book 'While Europe Slept'. Now Yuval Diskin the chief of Israel's Shabak Security Service, has warned that the Palestinian Authority on the West Bank had launched a diplomatic war that it is winning against Israel. Analyst David Essing says Diskin pulled no punches when he briefed a closed door session of the Knesset's Foreign affairs & Defense Committee.

Israel's Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has reacted swiftly to the sudden upheaval in Tunisia and the threat of a new civil war in Lebanon, Israel's northern neighbor, where Hezballah, an Iranian proxy is threatening to take overall control of the state. The shock waves are still reverberating throughout the entire Middle East and are likely to do so for some time to come. Iraq was formerly the epicenter, now Tunisia the quiet state on the Mediterranean that welcomed Israeli tourists, has become a new focus of turmoil. Its tyrannical President Ben Ali was toppled by thousands of citizens who took to the streets ending his regime of twenty three years. Meanwhile 'Lebanon is Lebanon'. The Sunni-Shiite, Christian and Druze ethnic tensions have again escalated after a UN inquiry has found Hezbollah guilty of assassinating former Sunni Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. Analyst David Essing has this assessment of how the recent developments may affect Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's strategic outlook.

At the latest Israeli cabinet meeting, when Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu personally thanked outgoing Mossad chief Meir Dagan, all the ministers rose to applaud. Although Mossad operations are never confirmed or denied, Dagan mounted a daring an effective campaign against Iran's nuclear weapons program during his unprecedented eight year tenure. Mossad operations have set back Iran's plans to acquire nuclear weapons for years, although there is still no sign the regime of ayatollahs are ready to halt the project, in spite of the economic sanctions that are hurting the country's economy. David Essing has this assessment of the man the Egyptian newspaper Al Aharam once called Israel's 'Superman'.

Israel's Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas show no signs of budging. U.S. envoys George Mitchell and Dennis Ross have returned to the Middle East in a new attempt to break the deadlock but Netanyahu rejects a new settlement moratorium while Abbas will not negotiate unless there is a new freeze. IsraCast analyst David Essing assesses the situation which has turned into a diplomatic war that Israel does not appear to be winning.

In Israel, Prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu to staving off demands for the resignation of Interior Minister Eli Ishai, who is seen as bearing most of the responsibility for the Fire Departments' failure to cope coping with the disastrous fire on Mount Carmel near Haifa. IsraCast analyst David Essing says that if Ishai is forced to go a domino effect might topple Netanyahu's government. The U.S. failure to revive Israeli-Palestinian peace talks is already creating more pressure on Defense Minister Ehud Barak to take the party out of the coalition.

It is the biggest fire in Israel's history killing forty-two people, three others are missing in the fire zone, animal and plant life over 8,000 acres has been decimated, one kibbutz razed and seventeen-thousand Israelis evacuated form their homes in the Mount Carmel region. The Israel Fire Departments were found to be woefully lacking in manpower, equipment and even the vital chemical suppressants for blocking the fire from spreading. For the first time, an Israeli prime minister had to appeal for foreign assistance to cope with the national disaster. Analyst David Essing says one fire expert has already charged that the forty-one prison guards were virtually 'murdered' due to the negligence of public officials.

Ironically the latest WikiLeaks revelations, and there are more to come, may be of long-term benefit to Israel- that's the assessment of IsraCast analyst David Essing. The fact that Arab leaders have quietly been urging the U.S. to bomb Iran reveals a new strategic balance in the region - the Sunni Arab states are lining up against Shi'ite Iran that is seeking nuclear weapons to impose regional hegemony.

Israel's Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has signaled his readiness to accept a U.S. proposal to freeze building in West Bank settlements for another three months in return for U.S. political and security incentives. Although Netanyahu is facing fierce opposition from inside his own ruling Likud party and some of his Right-wing coalition partners, the Prime Minister is expected to win a narrow victory in the security cabinet. Analyst David Essing assesses the implications of Netanyahu's dramatic decision that is now expected to kick-start peace talks with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.

The Israeli-Palestinian peace effort is still side-tracked after Israel' ten month moratorium on settlement building expired on Sept.26th. After refusing to conduct talks with Israel during the freeze, Pa;estinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas now demands the moratorium be further extended as a condition for returning to the table. Israel's Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has said he would stick to his ten month commitment, the Obama administration has urged Israel to extend the moratorium and the issue is likely to be at the top of the agenda when Netanyahu meets with Vice-President Joe Biden when they meet in the U.S. IsraCast analyst David Essing assesses the impact of President Barack Obama's defeat in the U.S. mid-term elections and some of the implications for Prime Minister Netanyahu.

After Iran's chief nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili has announced that Tehran is now ready to resume nuclear talks with the P5+1, what are the prospects? None according to Menashe Amir, an Israeli expert on Iran. Amir told IsraCast there was no possibility that Iran would halt its nuclear weapons program unless the international community was prepared to adopt more drastic steps to deter the Iranians. Interviewed by David Essing, Amir explained how 'the bomb' plays a crucial role in Iran's grand design for regional and international domination something that is misunderstood by some foreign commentators who either view Iran as a 'paper tiger' or preach 'the need to live with an Iranian bomb'.

There may be more than meets the eye behind the monumental U.S. arms sale of $60 billion to Saudi Arabia. IsraCast analyst David Essing assesses some of the possible ramifications against the backdrop of what could be a silent shift of some of Israel's strategic security considerations from Turkey to the Gulf. But there is still a fly in the ointment. In order for such a shift to jell there is a need for at least a semblance of progress on the Israeli- Palestinian track in order to placate public opinion in the Arab world. On the domestic scene, President Shimon Peres and Defense Minister Ehud Barak, two of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's strongest supporters have been urging Netanyahu to accept a U.S. request to extend the settlement freeze in the face of stiff opposition from the Right-wing coalition.

Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu continues to agonize over what to do about U.S. President Barack Obama's demand that Israel extend the settlement freeze in Judea & Samaria for another two months. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is sticking to his guns and refusing to carry on direct peace talks after the freeze expired on Sept.26th. The Arab League is scheduled to meet on Oct.8th to decide where it stands. Meanwhile, Iranian President Mahmud Achmadenijad is due to visit Lebanon shortly in a demonstration of support for his Hezbollah surrogate forces and travel down to the Israeli border. IsraCast analyst David Essing sees a link between the issue of the settlement freeze and the Iranian nuclear threat.